Ballmer: "Apple is only a $500 logo"

It doesn't matter which hardware you use (Apple is the best made bar none). As long as it doesn't have Windows on it people seem happy with it. Add windows and the hardware is worthless or close to it. I own Macs only.

First of all, Ballmer is on drugs if he thinks that a Dell Latitude is the same chunk of hardware as a MacBook. Just look at broadly reported customer satisfaction numbers and you'll see that's simply not true.

Secondly, Ballmer must remember that people aren't just buying hardware when they buy a computer. If that were the case, Windows wouldn't be bundled in. Instead, people are buying a package, that includes software. That has to be considered as part of the price.

Finally, Ballmer must know that Mac sales aren't down relative to the industry. Yes, the tide has turned back, but that's across the industry... and not just for Apple, but for Dell, HP, and... Microsoft.

Sadly, Ballmer has become merely a poor spokesman, always defending himself and his company, but failing at actually improving his business and his company's relationship with his customers (which, by the way, includes a large proportion of Mac users).

The big question is when will Microsoft shareholders say that Microsoft isn't producing enough, and force this guy out of a job. I'd think that it's getting pretty close. It's clear that Microsoft isn't a leader and isn't moving forward. Their biggest move of late has been proposing to buy Yahoo. And that didn't work.

First of all, Ballmer is on drugs if he thinks that a Dell Latitude is the same chunk of hardware as a MacBook. Just look at broadly reported customer satisfaction numbers and you'll see that's simply not true.

Secondly, Ballmer must remember that people aren't just buying hardware when they buy a computer. If that were the case, Windows wouldn't be bundled in. Instead, people are buying a package, that includes software. That has to be considered as part of the price.

Finally, Ballmer must know that Mac sales aren't down relative to the industry. Yes, the tide has turned back, but that's across the industry... and not just for Apple, but for Dell, HP, and... Microsoft.

Sadly, Ballmer has become merely a poor spokesman, always defending himself and his company, but failing at actually improving his business and his company's relationship with his customers (which, by the way, includes a large proportion of Mac users).

The big question is when will Microsoft shareholders say that Microsoft isn't producing enough, and force this guy out of a job. I'd think that it's getting pretty close. It's clear that Microsoft isn't a leader and isn't moving forward. Their biggest move of late has been proposing to buy Yahoo. And that didn't work.

Ballmer has been predicting doom and gloom for Apple for years. This is the same guy who said the iPod would fail miserably; that Apple would only sell, at most, 500 iPhones. He was wrong then and he’s equally wrong now, because he doesn’t get it. He has no clue as to why people love Apple. It’s design, quality, and end-to-end user experience. People appreciate quality and will always be willing to pay a little more for it. Ballmer assumes people are idiots because he can’t see that the difference is much more than the Apple logo.

This is a good thing. Having someone like Ballmer at the helm of Microsoft ensures that they will continue to issue buggy, bloated products, treat their customers like dirt and engage in monopolistic bullying of other companies. And Apple will continue to grab market share from them.

You have to pay Dell close to $500 to get Microsoft's logo OFF their computer....

Other companies besides Apple make decent computers, but if they don't run OS X, what's the point? I am a STRONG Apple advocate. Call me a cult follower, a fanboy, whatever you like. Fact is, I use both OS X and Windows on a daily basis. You know, "Windows because I have to, Mac because I want to." I complain about Windows idiosyncrasies to Windows IT experts, and what do I get? "You're right, Windows sucks." I load my Mac up with all kinds of 3rd party software and system modifications with nary a problem. My CLEAN Windows PC I use for work keeps apologizing for Microsoft Word needing to quit. So, what it comes down to is this: I have nothing against the other computer makers, except they don't run Mac OS X.

You guys just don't get it.... Apple is 20% about hardware bells and whistles, 30% about looks, and 50% about the fact that Apple OS is one of the most efficient, streamlined, user friendly, integrated, stable, and common-sense driven operating system in the world right now. That is what makes an Apple, even an iPhone (especially with the upcoming 3.0 firmware), stand apart from the rest. It just works.